


the heart wants what it wants

by CoachMegleg



Series: Cryptage Week: Drabbles [3]
Category: Apex Legends (Video Games)
Genre: Domestic Bliss, Domestic Fluff, Fluff, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Wedding Rings, cryptage week
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 02:14:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,098
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26737954
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/CoachMegleg/pseuds/CoachMegleg
Summary: If it was lost, he was a dead man. He better sign his will now because there was no coming back from this. Wraith could have his alcohol collection, his tech went back to his mom, Octavio could have his-“Looking for something?”---Elliot's been keeping secrets and Tae Joon finds something he shouldn't have.Cryptage Week Day 3- Ring
Relationships: Crypto | Park Tae Joon/Mirage | Elliott Witt
Series: Cryptage Week: Drabbles [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1942861
Comments: 6
Kudos: 47





	the heart wants what it wants

**Author's Note:**

> I'm once again back on my bullshit of writing nothing but fluff for these two! It's based off an rp I did with someone sooo enjoy!
> 
> (Apologies for any typoes or errors, this was kinda rushed today so sorry in advance if I missed anything!)

Shit shit shit _shit shit_ _ **SHIT-**_

_**Where was it?!** _

Elliot frantically tossed socks out of the drawer, littering the bedroom floor with strewn pieces of clothing. Hiding it in the sock drawer of all places had seemed like a good idea weeks ago, but now...oh now he was screwed. It'd been there a day ago! He was certain about that, since he'd checked it for the several hundredth time yesterday evening while Tae Joon had been in the office, working on some adjustments for Hack. He'd put it right back- where did it go?!

If it was lost, he was a dead man. He better sign his will now because there was no coming back from this. Wraith could have his alcohol collection, his tech went back to his mom, Octavio could have his-

“Looking for something?”

Elliot spun around in a hurry, wincing as he whacked his elbow against the dresser drawer. Standing in the threshold of the doorway was Tae Joon, his hip cocked against the door frame as he watched Elliot with an amused look on his face.“O-Oh hey ba-babe- I'm not-! No! Not looking for anyt-any-anything at all!”

Lying to the public might be easy- hiding his feelings behind smiles and winks and teasing jokes. He'd grown accustomed to telling them what they wanted to hear when they wanted it- it was easy, like a game with no consequences.

But lying to Tae Joon? A man who probably knew him better than he knew himself? It was a lot harder.

Tae Joon seemed amused by his horrible attempts at lying, raising a brow the more Elliot fidgeted. It'd been hard enough keeping this little secret under wraps for as long as he had, but if he'd found it, if he'd _looked at it-_

“Are you certain you're not looking for something important?”  
  
“Nope! Nothing-Nothing at all!”

Please don't ask please don't ask please don't ask-

“Odd. Because I found something...interesting.”

**Shit.**

Elliot's eyes widened as Tae Joon pulled a small box from his hoodie pocket, twisting it in his hands to get a better look at it. It was small, could fit in the palm of your hand. Covered in dark green velvet.

“Fuck.”

“So this does belong to you.” Tae Joon smiled with a hint of...was that nervousness? If anyone should be nervous, it was Elliot! He'd hidden the box so well, how the hell had Tae Joon found it?! Sure, Tae Joon had the habit of stealing his fuzzy socks when it got colder, but Elliot had purposefully left them in the other man's drawer so he wouldn't run the risk of finding the box! He should've listened to his mom, left it at her place, but he'd been so nervous and now it's all ruined and-

“Elliot.” He quickly snapped his head up to look at the other man. Tae Joon's smile was now an uncomfortable grimace. His heart plummeted.

“What's in the box?”

Now...that was the million dollar question, wasn't it? In any other situation, Elliot would've made some dumb joke to defuse the tension, maybe even tried to get Tae Joon to hand the box over like it was no big deal. But it was a big deal. And he was screwed. Everything he'd been planning was thrown out the window as Elliot's shoulders curled in on themselves, a heavy sigh weighing him down.

Oh his mother was going to kill him for this when she found out...

“Open it.”

“What?” From the sound of it, that certainly wasn't the answer Tae Joon was expecting.

“Just...look, ju-just open it, okay?”

He couldn't look. He didn't want to see the annoyance or, God forbid, anger on Tae Joon's face when he saw exactly what was nestled in that tiny box. With his arms crossed over his chest to hide the shaking in his hands, Elliot looked away as he heard the squeaky hinges of the box open followed by awkward, achingly tense silence.

Was this a bad idea? It probably was a terrible idea. Maybe he still had a chance to jump out the window-

“What is this?” Tae Joon's voice sounded breathy and so incredibly small- it was so unlike him. So unlike the man he'd grown to know and love over the past year. Not Hyeon Kim- not the mask he wore in front of everyone. But Tae Joon Park- the awkward, dorky hacker he'd fallen head-over-heels for.

“They're-uh-” Elliot still refused to look at Tae Joon's face, “- they're rings...”

“I see that,” The reply was quiet in its harshness, a bit strained, “but...why?”

He'd wanted to work on a speech- he wanted it to be flowery and full of jokes that'd make Tae Joon smile and roll his eyes trying to hide his embarrassment. There would've been flowers and a fancy home cooked dinner and it was supposed to be perfect. But never have it be said that Elliot Witt couldn't roll with the punches.

“We-Well- uh- I- those are...they used to be my mom and dads rings- a-and before that they belonged to my grandparents. And...y'know. Their parents. It's uh- k-kind of a family tradition- eldest kid gets the parents rings but since there's...just-just me now, Mom gave 'em to me...and well- I- I made some tiny uh mod-modef-m-modifications to them...”

One ring tucked away in the box was a thin, gold band nestled between two veins of onyx metal with three small diamonds in the middle. The gold band had been his mother's, and she'd given him permission to make some minor adjustments to fit Tae Joon's tastes. It couldn't be flashy- but it just...it fit. Elliot had worked endlessly for weeks making those modifications, always using the excuse of working on his tech whenever Tae Joon asked. The other was a similar design, with his father's thicker golden band being the centerpiece framed with the same dark metal. While Elliot had never met his father, his mother had smiled at him as he stared down at the rings, saying how proud he would be of him right now.

He'd adjusted the rings to their sizes (it'd been so hard to try and get Tae Joon's ring size without him noticing- thankfully, he slept like the dead when he was curled up against his chest, so it'd been the perfect time to sneakily measure his finger) and added the darker metal- it'd just...felt more like _theirs._ Maybe one day they'd have their own kids to pass these rings down to, but for now, he needed them to be perfect for them- for Tae Joon.

Honestly...he was surprised she hadn't given him the rings the moment he brought home Tae Joon to meet her months ago. It had, thankfully, been a good day for her- and he would be lying if he said he didn't get teary eyed watching her sit with his boyfriend on the couch, going over old family photos and embarrassing baby pictures. The two of them had hit it off right away and, more times than not, he'd come home to hear him on the phone with his mom, talking to her about anything and everything. They tried to go visit her as much as they could with their busy schedules, and had even video-called Mystik a few times- but sadly, those were a bit less frequent given the circumstances.

He'd been so nervous meeting Mystik for the first time, even though Tae Joon had insisted she would love him. But she loved _Mirage_ and she was very much so not meeting the suave and cocky Apex Legend- she was meeting the awkward, stuttering, foolish man who'd fallen in love with her adopted son. In the end, there'd been nothing to worry about, as she loved him just as much as his own mom loved Tae Joon.

(It did help that he loved to send her new signed merch, which she loved showing off).

Last time he went to visit his mom a little over a month ago, Tae Joon hadn't been able to join- far too busy following a new lead. It'd been the perfect time for her to sit him down at the table and hand over that same, familiar velvet box.

“ _I knew from the moment you first brought him home that you loved him,”_ she'd smiled at him, holding his trembling hands as he stared at the two wedding bands, _“and he loves you too- so why not?”_

She was right- she always had the eagle eye even on the worst of days. The love he had for him clawed at his chest, wanting to burst forth so he could scream from the roof tops that he loved Tae Joon Park.

Tae Joon would always have a place in his family...he just wanted to make it official.

That is, if he wanted that too.

Oh God, they never talked about this. Did Tae Joon want this? Did he want to get married and be stuck with him for the foreseeable future?

Elliot nervously chewed at his bottom lip, his hands fidgeting as he watched Tae Joon pick up the smaller of the two rings, the one with the small diamonds embedded in the gold band. Tae Joon's face was...frighteningly blank as he twisted the ring in his hand, brushing his finger against gold and onyx. No matter how nervous Elliot was, he hated how much he liked seeing him holding the ring- _his ring_.

“And they're for-” Tae Joon stopped himself, pursing his lips, “-us?”

“Yes.” There was no point hiding it now. Once the flood gates were opened, Elliot couldn't stop rambling. “I-I was- I promise! That there was gonna be a-a fancy ho-homemade dinner! And-And flowers! And I was- there was gonna be a speech and-and–!”

“Elliot.” In his flustered rambling, Elliot hadn't even realized Tae Joon was no longer standing in the doorway, but right in front of him. His breath stuttered in his throat at the soft, anxious look on Tae Joon's face, how his hands slightly shook as he slipped the ring box back into Elliot's hand. A smile, fragile and small and _beautiful_ graced his face.

“Ask me, Elliot. Please.”

Maybe this wasn't going to be the perfect proposal he had planned, it wouldn't be fancy or proper or at the right time, yet as he held onto the ring the hacker had been toying with moments earlier, he couldn't help but realize that this was more _them_. Spontaneous and messy and awkward but perfect. He didn't get down on one knee- that was a bit too cliché, even for him. But he did hold onto Tae Joon's hand, slipping their fingers together as his free hand fiddled with the ring.

“I love you so much. I- I know we didn't talk about something like- like this but when Mom showed me the box I just- I knew I wanted to. I mean, I knew already I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you but this...” Elliot laughed, pressing a kiss to the back of Tae Joon's hands. He couldn't tell whose hands were shaking more. “This just....it makes it official. I can't scream from the rooftops just yet that I love you, but this is a close second. I- I want to have a family with you, maybe some kids or-or just us, I don't care. I want to tell people you're my husband and see you roll your eyes whenever I call myself Mr. Park. I want your face to be the last thing I see every night and the first thing I see every morning.

Tae Joon Park, would you make me the happiest fool in the Outlands and marry me?”

He didn't reply right away, far too preoccupied with leaning in to crash their lips together in a messy, sweet kiss. Tae Joon's free hand cupped his cheek, brushing away the few tears Elliot hadn't even realized he'd shed. It was only when they broke away to breathe did he whisper his response, the sweetest sound Elliot had ever heard.

“ _Yes_.”

(Later that night, after _proper celebrations_ , they video called Elliot's mom. The smile on her face was blinding as Tae Joon proudly showed her the rings on their fingers. No matter what happened going forward, Elliot realized as he watched Tae Joon and Eveline talk about marriage and ceremonies and celebrations, everything was going to be alright- because they'd face it together...as Mr. and Mr. Park) 

**Author's Note:**

> You can't give me the prompt "ring" and expect me NOT to write a sappy marriage proposal 
> 
> Thanks for reading!!! :D Find me over on twitter @CoachMegleg and check out #CryptageWeek for more great art and fics by this wonderful community!!!


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